by Amanda Hueneke

At Hello Imprint, one of the core values in our mission is to communicate with our clients proactively and in a timely manner. It is with that in mind, that we want to prepare our clients for coming shifts in the promotional, apparel and signage supply chains.

A benefit of working with Hello Imprint, instead of a big box online retailer of promo products- is that our clients are working with a person, not a website. Our website is a tool for clients to gain ideas; but when we build a presentation for our clients, we do our best to include products that are readily available at the most benefit to the client. Over the last year, it has become increasingly important that we pre-verify inventory on each order before committing to delivery. Product is moving off the shelves quickly, and sometimes by the hour. Demand for promotional products, corporate gifts, apparel, and PPE is approaching unparalleled levels, even as our supply chain struggles under the strain of shipper delays, labor and material shortages, and rising costs due to tariffs overseas.

With that being said, we’ve had to have some tough conversations with clients as to why inventory levels are not where they used to be, and sometimes- we have to explain why the cost of their order may have risen over the last year and a half- even when it might be a repeat order. We always do our best to mitigate as much of the budget and time strain as possible for our clients- another benefit of working with a real person, instead of keying in an order on a website. We can do this by directing the client to products that are in stock and shipped from locations closest to them.

The graphic below explains our supply chain and some of the factors that are affecting it. While this graphic applies specifically to apparel- most of this can be applied across almost all promotional products, signs and materials.

I know that all our businesses are feeling the strain of COVID effects, and this is not a message that I love to communicate; but it is moments like this that allow our creativity and resourcefulness to grow. Please know Hello Imprint will do our best to protect your interests, budget and time, as we help you execute your marketing goals.

Looking forward to your next creative hello,

Amanda Hueneke